New Album: Jaden – ‘ERYS’

As promised, Jaden Smith dropped off his second studio album at midnight (7/5). ‘ERYS’ is the follow-up to his 2017 album of the opposite name, ‘SYRE.’ While structured similarly to his debut album, ‘ERYS’ brings forth a completely different side of Jaden.

Jaden announced the album’s release date and tracklist earlier this week. The 18-track project includes features from A$AP Rocky on “Chateau,” Kid Cudi on “On My Own,” Trinidad James on “Mission,” and Tyler, the Creator on “NOIZE.” He also features his sister, Willow Smith, on the first few tracks of the album, much like he did in his last project. Willow is also featured on “Summertime in Paris.” Similar to his previous album, the opening four songs play out consecutively as if they were one, very elaborate, track.

Though there are many aspects of ‘ERYS’ that mirror the structure of ‘SYRE,’ there are clear differences that can be noted. ‘SYRE’ featured a much slower and smoother sound, while many of the tracks on ‘ERYS’ are more beat heavy. In an interview on Beats 1 Radio with Zane Lowe, Jaden shared:

“SYRE is the nice one, kind of the more sensitive one. And ERYS is just kind of like, doesn’t really care at all.”

This duality is further emphasized on the previously released single, “Again.” Regarding the track, Jaden states:

“It’s kind of like the angel and devil on my shoulder, and SYRE’s the angel. That was me telling the world, ‘Yo, this album’s gonna be something you haven’t seen from me.'”